House passes judicial selection plan

The House passed, 58-38, the same judicial selection plan that passed the Senate earlier today. The plan would keep in place most aspects of the current system of choosing judges, but would change the makeup of the commission that selects candidates. It would also change a “yes-no” vote to a “retain-replace” vote on the ballot, and would hold a general election if a judge was not retained in his or her position.

The House passed, 63-30, an amendment to remove the Governor’s ability in the current bill to dismiss the collective six candidates offered to him by the judicial selection commission, and choose another candidate from those interviewed. The bill will now go back to the Senate.

Previous action:

Rep. Brian Kelsey, R-Germantown, on why the House should insist on direct elections: “When you have one name on the ballot, that is a communist election like they have in China. That’s not an election.” (Kelsey’s proposal failed.)

Rep. Joe McCord, R-Maryville, of a proposal to keep the current system intact: “This absolutely cannot pass the Senate. That’s the status of where we are.”

Lawmakers then delayed the bill to further discuss the issue as the House takes up other legislation. Supporters of the bill are trying to convince Rep. Jimmy Naifeh, D-Covington, to withdraw an amendment to keep the current judicial selection system, known as the Tennessee Plan.

(12:50 p.m.) Naifeh: “(The provisions) are not exactly what I want, but they’re what we’re going to have to take, because we’re being held hostage. We’re being held hostage by the Senate. That’s the Golden Rule: Them’s that’s got the votes make the rules, and they’ve got them over there.”

Naifeh agrees in principle to removing his proposal, but McCord moves to table it anyway. The tabling motion fails, and then Naifeh withdraws his bill, affirmed by the House.